Video saves court money, time and exposure

Posted: Wednesday, May 04, 2005

The Benedictine Military School sophomore accused of robbing a McDonald's over the weekend limped off camera Wednesday morning during one of the first felony arraignment hearings Chatham County Recorder's Court has conducted on video.

Cole McEachern, 17, shot in the groin Saturday night with his own gun by the Wilmington Island's restaurant manager who wrestled it away from him, found out he won't be getting out of the Chatham County jail anytime soon.

He didn't get out of lockup to attend his court hearing either.

That's because Sheriff Al St. Lawrence and Recorder's Court Clerk Brian Hart have begun a video-conferencing arraignment program. They say it will save the county money and improve safety at the courthouse.

Judge Lawrence Dillon denied McEachern a bond because he is charged with armed robbery and aggravated assault. Only a Superior Court judge can set a bond on those kinds of felony charges.

Bowen said his client was forced into committing the robbery by possible drug dealers.

Arraignments are short hearings for incarcerated defendants the courts must hold within 48 hours of an arrest.

There were more than 40 defendants on the docket for Wednesday's morning session. St. Lawrence said it would have taken his deputies at least four trips from the jail on Chatham Parkway to the courthouse on Montgomery Street.

"We've been working on this for a while now," St. Lawrence said. "I think it went very well today."

It took 40 or 45 minutes to accomplish what would have taken at least four hours to do without the video feed, he said. It's also safer than either bringing the inmates downtown or having a judge take the bench in the courtroom set up at the jail, he said.

Savannah defense attorney Douglas G. Andrews said seeing how the video-conferencing worked allayed any concerns he had that the process would infringe on the constitutional rights of the defendants.

"We're about to bust the common belief that Savannah is 300 years behind progress," Andrews said. "We're coming into the 21st century - or maybe I should just say 20th.

"The concerns of the defense bar were: don't sacrifice the rights of the defendants for efficiency. But it appears their rights are being addressed quicker."